The bromance turned conflict that embodied the relationship between President Donald Trump and his chief strategist Steve Bannon, has erupted immensely in recent weeks and months, as Bannon’s condescending remarks about the Trump White House have emerged in the public sphere. Most notably, the book Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff became a cornerstone of these criticisms, as Bannon attacked Trump’s lack of mental stability and called into question his ability to lead a nation.

The claim comes from Joshua Green, a Bloomberg correspondent and author of Devil’s Bargain, a book detailing the partnership that existed between the president and Bannon. Green believes that the initial criticism of not being the president’s caretaker was among the first of his attacks against Trump’s fitness to be in office, which would later carry into the excerpts that would be released in Wolff’s aforementioned bombshell book.

Upon release of Fire and Fury, Trump immediately began lashing out at both the author of the book, claiming that his book had no legitimate or credible foundations, as well as targeting Bannon with a barrage of insults, including calling him by the nickname of “Sloppy Steve”. Despite the array of attacks against him, Bannon maintained his unwavering support of the president following the release of Wolff’s book, claiming that he continued to favor Trump’s agenda and rescinding comments made about Donald Trump Jr.

Bannon was removed from office shortly after the hyper-conservative rally which took place in Charlottesville last August, which left one counter-protester dead after a car plowed into the crowd. Bannon, who co-founded and chaired the right-wing news outlet Breitbart until leaving in January, has been a foremost supporter of alt-right and white supremacist ideals, and is credited with facilitating the divisive ideology back into mainstream American life.